She Helps
by Token97
Summary: In one night Aang's whole life is destroyed. And now everything he knows has changed. He can't heal by himself. Sometimes you need help.
1. Chapter 1

_Bang. _Someone screamed in pain.

Aang woke with a start.

"Wha-?" he murmured, confused.

He heard a gruff yell downstairs. He scrambled out of bed and ran towards the door. Making a sharp turn in the hallway, he leaped down the steps four at a time.

"You were supposed to be out of town!" the same gruff voice hollered in panic. It was coming from his parent's room.

At the bottom of the stairs he turned and sprinted toward their room without thinking. Someone he loved was hurt. Personal safety didn't matter.

He stopped at the threshold of his parent's room in horror.

A man with a blue dragon mask stood with a revolver pointed to his father's chest. His mother lay motionless to the side. The masked man turned the gun towards Aang in a sharp motion.

"No!" his father screamed and tackled the man.

_Bang._

The masked man scrambled to his feet as Aang watched on in horror. The man looked at Aang.

"I'm sorry…" he said. His voice wasn't gruff anymore. It was small as a young boy's. The man ran towards the window, opened it, and frantically climbed out. He was gone. Just like that.

"Aang…" His father groaned.

"Dad!" he ran and kneeled by his father.

Blood was spilling out of his father's chest and soaking his shirt.

"Dad, no, no, no!"

"Aang… It's okay… Me and your mom. We'll leave together." He coughed and sputtered out.

Aang grabbed his mother's shoulder to roll her over.

"Don't!" His father said, "Don't. Remember her as she was in life… Not as she is death."

"She's dead! No! Please no! This can't be happening!" Aang sobbed.

"Aang." His father grabbed his shoulder, "Aang… Listen to me."

"I'm here, dad. I'm here."

"I…love you."

"I love you too. Dad, let me call an ambulance, you can make it through this!"

"You're the best thing I've ever done…with my life." He coughed again, blood spurting out of his mouth.

"Dad, please don't talk like that, please!"

"Live a good, happy life."

"No! Please…" Tears streamed down his face. "Don't leave me…"

"I love you, son… I love you…" his voice was getting quieter and quieter, like it was fading away.

"I love you too. So much."

"I…love…you…" His father's head fell and thudded on the hardwood floor. He gasped his last breath, and then lay still.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Aang sat in the police chief's office with the Chief and one of his lieutenants. The lieutenant's name was Hakoda or something. Aang didn't remember.

"All I saw… Was a man in a blue mask murder my parents…" Aang said, his eyes red and puffy.

"A blue mask… Are there any other details about him you remember?"

"Chief." The lieutenant interjected. He was the man who had found Aang there, lying next to his dead parents, sobbing silently. He had said the neighbors had called the police after hearing gun shots. "I don't think now's the time to be asking the boy any questions. He's still in shock."

"Hakoda, every second we wait is another second head-start that thug gets to leave Seattle, or even the state!"

"I understand that sir, but like the boy said he didn't see how he looked. Forensics is a better option for catching the-"

"He was wearing a blue mask and in all black! I don't know what he looks like, and I don't have any useful information, okay?" Aang yelled. He didn't want nay questions right now. He just wanted to be alone.

The Chief sighed. "I'm sorry for you loss, son. That's enough for now." He said. He stood and started to leave the office.

"Wait." Aang stopped him before he left. "He said we were supposed to be out of town. But we weren't. Our neighbors were though. He must've-" His voice cracked as he started to cry again, "He must've tried to rob them and got the addresses mixed up."

"Thank you, son." The Chief said. "That'll be useful." And then he left the office.

The lieutenant walked over to Aang and slipped out of his jacket. "Here.", he said as he placed it around Aang's shoulders. He could tell that the cop was trying to comfort him, although it didn't work. The officer with the wolf tail hair cut knelt in front of Aang and looked him in the eyes.

"Do you have a place to stay? A family member or a close friend?"

"Yeah… My grandma lives not far from here."

"Okay, what's her address? I'll drive you there."

"1928, Clubview Road."

"1928? Huh, that's right across the street from my house. What a coincidence."

Aang didn't respond. He could care less.

"Alright well, I picked these clothes up from your house. No shoes, sorry. But you can change here if you want."

Aang looked down and his t-shirt and shorts. They were covered in blood. "Yeah, I'll ch-change here."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-

_Knock, knock, knock._

After a few minutes the door opened to reveal Aang's Grandma Yangchen. Her brow creased with worry when she saw a police officer with her grandson.

She began to sob as Hakoda told her the news.

"Oh, no, no, no! Not Gyatso and Kathy… Oh Aang!" she rushed forward and pulled Aang into a hug. Aang didn't know how long they stood there and wept together, but eventually Hakoda spoke up.

"I'll leave you two now. I'll be back tomorrow. I'm so sorry for your loss."

"Yes, thank you officer." Yangchen said through sobs.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Eventually his grandmother cried herself to sleep. But Aang wasn't so lucky. He tossed and turned on the couch as his grandma slept in the recliner. He had listened to his father and didn't look at his mother. He remembered her face full of life. But it wasn't the same with his father. All he could see was his blank eyes and he pale face when he thought about him. And not only that, but his father's last words kept echoing through his skull like a bat trying to get out of a cage.

But his father wasn't the only source of his horror. That damned mask kept flashing in front of his eyes. That fucking grin. Those goddamned mocking eyes. He hated it. He hated it with every fiber of his being. But the hate for the man behind that mask was greater. It was as if his hate sucked the life from everything around him until there was nothing left except him and the scratchy pillow under his cheek.

As the first morning lights came in through the window, Aang finally drifted off into an uneasy slumber full of dead fathers and blue masks.

**-Token**


	2. Chapter 2

_Bang._

_A scream._

_Bang._

_I'm sorry…_

_I…love…you…_

_ The mask._

Aang awoke in a cold sweat. It was three days since it happened. And the third day he stayed locked up in his grandma's guest room. He felt dirty. He hadn't showered yet. The thought hadn't even crossed his mind until now.

He got up reluctantly and walked out into the hall. He heard aunt and uncle downstairs discussing funeral plans. He ignored the sound and went straight into the bathroom.

Looking at himself in the mirror he noticed something wrong. He was pale with massive bags under his eyes. But that wasn't it. There was something else. Just under his left ear there was dried blood. He scratched it off and looked at it under his finger-nail.

His stomach churned as he examined his father's blood. He took two steps and fell onto the toilet, bile pouring out of his mouth. He found himself in tears when he was done.

He flushed the toilet and wiped his mouth before stumbling into the shower and turning it on. He laid there on the bottom of the tub, fully clothed, as the hot water scorched his skin.

He didn't get out until the water turned cold. He stumbled to his room and changed. That cop, what was his name? Hakoda. He had brought Aang's clothes from his house.

After he had slipped into new clothes he realized the shower didn't help. He still felt dirty.

-0-0-0-0-0-

The next day the doorbell rang. A few minutes later Aang heard a few soft knocks on the door.

"I have supper, Aang."

"Come in."

"It's locked sweetie," she said.

After a few seconds of staring at that door, wishing it would open on its own accord, Aang stood and unlocked the door.

As Yangchen entered she said, "The neighbors brought over a casserole. I believe they were the children of the police officer who brought you here. A boy and a girl. They both looked to be around your age. The boy didn't talk much but the girl was the sweetest, most respectful little darling. Except I suppose she wasn't very little. She was a proper young woman, really."

Aang only grunted in reply to his grandma's rambling, and fell back on the bed.

"The funeral's in a few days, you know. Do you have anything decent to wear?"

"I dunno."

"Well, here let me see," she said as she began to look through the closet. "Here. This shirt and these pants will be nice."

"How can you be so cheerful? You act like nothing happened!" Aang said, exasperated.

"Cheerful? I'm the farthest from cheerful than I've ever been. But sometimes you have to put on a strong face. Sometimes, people need reassurance," she replied seriously. She sighed deeply then sat down on the bed next to him. "I thought losing your grandpa Kuruk was the hardest thing I'd ever been through. And it was hard, yes, but this… this is different. They say the hardest thing in the _world_ for a parent is to lose a child. I didn't give birth to your mother, but I saw her as my own. I lost two children. And, and-" her voice broke, "Well, I'm sixty-eight years old. I never imagined I would outlive my only children." Tears began to stream down her face.

"Grandma-"

"No. We have to be strong," she said and smiled through her tears. "Your mother's siblings and parents are here, you know. You don't have to talk to them now if you don't want to. But at the funeral you will."

"Should I say something at the funeral about my parents?"

"Not if it's too hard."

"They're my parents… I should say something." Aang said.

"If you feel you have to…Well, there are still plans to make. I'll let you eat now," she stood to leave when Aang asked her "Will there be a wake (**viewing**)?"

"No… They told us that your mother is too damaged for there to be an open casket. Now eat your supper," and with that, she left.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Aang sat in the front row at the funeral home. His uncle was saying something about his parents, but he couldn't pay attention. He was looking at the caskets, both closed. His father's was white, and his mother's was black. It was fitting. His father was an albino with pale white hair while his mother's hair was jet black. Pictures of them filled up a board. In all of them they were smiling. They were so happy.

It sounded distant, but he heard someone say, "And now, their son, Aang, would like to share a few words."

He looked around, confused for a moment, before standing up and walking to the podium. He looked out along the crowd; so many people loved his parents. He took a deep breath and pulled a folded piece of paper from his pocket.

"My parents," he began to read with a shaky voice, "were-" and then it hit him. Black and white. Salt and pepper.

_They sat around the dining room table, laughing and talking._

"_Look dad!" the seven year old Aang had said, pointing and the salt and pepper, "it's like you and mom! You're salt, and she's pepper!"_

_They all had laughed._

"Salt and pepper." Aang breathed into the microphone. And then the tears came. They spilled out of his eyes and the sobs came. 'I'm sorry!" he choked out to his parent's coffins. "I'm sorry…"

And then his grandmother's arms were around him, guiding him off the stage.

-0-0-0-0-0-

He was alone in front of their graves. Everyone else had gone to their cars to get out of the rain. It was like the sky itself was crying for his parents. With one last "I love you, I'm so sorry…" whispered out, he got up to leave.

As he walked a voice called out to him.

"Hey."

He turned to see a girl standing by and old oak tree, and umbrella held over her head. She had tanned caramel skin, with dark chocolate hair and big ocean blue eyes.

"I'm Katara, Hakoda's daughter. I live across the street."

"You came to their funeral? You never met them."

"I know," she said "but my family wanted to come, and pay our respects."

"Why?"

"Well, because my father felt he needed to."

"Okay." He didn't know why he asked. He didn't really care… Although he supposed it was nice of them.

"Well, I thought I'd wait for you. You don't have an umbrella, and you're getting soaked."

"Yeah, I guess I am," he said dejectedly.

"Here, we can share," she said and walked up next to him.

As they neared his grandma's car he said, "Thanks."

She smiled, "You're welcome. And I'm sorry about your parents. I lost my mom a while back. I know how it feels. Time won't completely heal the wound, but it will make it feel better. I'll see you." she said and walked off toward her car.

"See you," he said to her retreating form. Everyone else had told him how sorry they were. What she said was the first thing that had made him feel just a little better.

**-Token**


	3. Chapter 3

_Bang._

_Aang stood there in horror as the man with the mask stood up, his father dead on the floor. The man looked at Aang through the mask. He lifted his hand to his face. In a slow motion the man removed the mask. And the face under it was… Aang's._

"I'm sorry!" Aang screamed, waking from his nightmare, "I'm sorry…"

He sighed and wiped his tears as he realized it was only a dream. He hated this. He couldn't sleep without being tormented by his memories. He longed for a deep dreamless sleep, something he hadn't been able to experience since before his parents died a month ago. He was exhausted. Every night he could only achieve a few hours at sleep. And that was if he was lucky.

He looked at the alarm clock which read 5:30 PM. His sleep schedule is so messed up. With a grunt he pushed himself into a sitting position and surveyed his room. It was mess with clothes and dishes scattered on the floor. It had been this way since all of his possessions were moved to his grandmother's after she had gained custody of him. He simply didn't care about the state of his room.

He switched on the small TV in the room and sighed again as he watched some nature documentary. He would've changed the channel but he didn't feel up to it. That is until the scene changed to two parent elephants and their child.

He turned the TV off immediately. He didn't want to cry. He was so tired of crying.

_Knock, knock, knock._

"Come in, grandma," he said to the door.

She entered and looked disappointed at the messy room. "Aang, you can't live like this, sweetie," she said as she started to pick up clothes and put them in the hamper.

"What is it you wanted Grandma?" he said, wanting her to leave.

"Sweetie, listen. You can't just stay up here like a recluse. You'll never heal if you stay up here and obsess over it all day, every day," she said concernedly

"What am I supposed to do, then?"

"Well, whatever happened to your piano playing? Or your writing? Or drawings?"

"Yeah, well, I don't feel like any of that." He said dismissively

"Why not?" she asked.

"Because the only things I can think of to play, write, or draw, depress the shit out of me!" he exclaimed.

"Honey, please don't use that language!"

"Whatever."

Yangchen sighed. "Well, what about those neighbor kids?"

"What about them?" he said sarcastically.

"You should go make friends with them."

"Grandma… I'm not ready to do something like that," he said, serious now.

"You'll never be ready, Aang. But you have to go out into the world anyway. Otherwise you'll never move on. Please, Aang, for me."

Aang felt a tear begin to roll down his cheek. He rushed to wipe it away. He was so fucking_ tired_ of crying all the time.

"Okay… I'll go and… and talk to them," he said in a shaky voice.

Yangchen smiled, "Thank you sweetie. Now fix yourself up. You're a mess."

As Aang got up to gather clothes Yangchen brought him into an embrace. "I love you, Aang," she said and kissed his forehead.

"I love you too Grandma."

She smiled again and left the room as Aang picked up some folded clothes in the rocking chair. Then he walked into the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. He'd have to shave before he went as his face was scraggly with 5 0'clock shadow. His hair was shaggy as well. He'd just run a brush through it.

For some reason, as he stood there looking at himself, he tried to smile. It was... difficult. And when he had done it, it looked bad; fake. He sighed and stepped into the shower. He hoped his neighbors would make him feel better. He hoped _anything_ would make him feel better.

-0-0-0-0-0-

His feet went _splat, splat, splat,_ as he walked on the wet ground. He pulled his hood up to shield his head from the rain and shoved his hands into his hoodie pockets. Once he crossed the street he rang the doorbell. After a few moments the door opened and a boy who looked to be just a little older than Aang came into view.

"Oh," he said, "you're the kid whose parrr-… uhh…" He was about to say 'whose parents died', it was incredibly obvious.

"Yeah," was Aang's reply.

"Uhhh… what's up?"

"I just thought I'd introduce myself to my neighbors, and stuff. You know." Aang said.

Just then, past the boy at the door and down the hall, Katara rounded the corner and saw Aang. "Oh, hey!" she said. She walked over past the boy and up to Aang.

"You're Aang, right?"

"Mhm."

"Here, come in. It's pouring outside."

She pushed then boy down the short hallway and motioned for Aang to follow. Once they got into the living room she said, "This is my brother Sokka."

"Hi, Sokka," Aang said.

"Hey," he said and smiled at Aang. He tried to return the smile, but he didn't know how convincing it looked.

"So, Aang, why'd you come over?" she asked.

"Oh, you know, just needed to get out of the house," he said, trying to sound cheery.

"Cool," she said with a smile, "We're about to have dinner, do you want to join us?" she said sweetly.

"Sure. I mean if it's okay."

"No, it's fine. I always make extra for left-overs. Come on," she said and guided him into the kitchen. "Hey, Dad," she said to Hakoda who was standing by the stove, "Aang, our neighbor, came over," Hakoda immediately looked up at Aang's name, "He's gonna have dinner with us, is that okay?"

Hakoda's face grew soft when he looked at Aang, "Yeah, yeah! That'll be great."

"Hey, Dad, can you take him to the dining room? You don't have to watch the stove for me anymore, I got it," Katara said.

"Yeah, sure, come on Aang. You're gonna _love _Katara's cooking," Hakoda said as he guided him into the other room.

Sokka was already seated with a plate in from of him. When they sat down there was an awkward silence. But thankfully that didn't last long as soon Katara came in with steaks and baked potatoes. She set it on the table then everybody got their food. Aang old got a small steak and half a potato as he wasn't really hungry.

"Now these aren't grilled," Hakoda said as he took a huge bite, "but Katara knows how to make them real good anyways."

When Aang took a bite he had to agree. "It's good," he said after he swallowed.

'Thank you," Katara said.

There was silence for most of the meal as Hakoda and Sokka stuffed their faces, but as they were all close to finishing Katara said, "I'm sorry about my brother and dad's messy eating, Aang."

"Eesh nawt thot bad Katawa," Sokka said through his last mouthful of food.

"Yeah, it kind of is," Katara said.

Hakoda laughed while the strangest thing happened to Aang. _He smiled._ He genuinely smiled. Without thinking about, without forcing it, it just _happened._ He smiled again at the thought of it. But, all good things come to an end. The weight that was momentarily lifted came crashing down again, and his depression came back over him.

They chatted for a little after dinner about various things like school starting in a month, but when they started to all get up, Aang decided he should go.

"Thank you for dinner. I think I'm gonna head home now," he said.

"Oh, okay, thanks for coming over Aang," Hakoda said.

"Yeah, cool seeing you man," Sokka said.

Aang nodded and headed for the door. He knew it was probably rude to eat and run, but he really just wanted to go home. Or go to his grandmother's home at least.

As he neared the door he heard "Wait," from behind him. He turned to see Katara walking quickly up to him.

"I just wanted to say that you're welcome to come over at any time. And that it's good seeing you."

"Thanks," he said and smiled the second real smile that night.

She smiled back at him and waved as he opened the door. "Katara," turned around and said to her, "I'm sorry I wasn't the best guest by not talking that much and stuff, but… you know, I just…" he trailed off.

"It's fine, Aang. I understand," she smiled at him again.

"Thanks. See you," he said.

"See you."

When he got back to his grandma's house she asked him, "How was it? Did you make new friends?"

"Yeah… I think I did."

**-Token**


	4. Chapter 4

_Bang._

_Mask._

Aang opened his eyes with a deep intake of breath. He held it for a moment before letting it go.

His arms popped as he pushed himself off the bed and onto the ground. He looked at his room. It was spotless. The night after he got home from Katara and Sokka's house, he had spent an hour cleaning it to the last dust bunny.

In the next few days since then he had followed Yangchen's advice and kept himself busy in any way he could think of. His grandmother's house probably looked better than it did for years. He had spent hours dusting every surface, cleaning every nook and cranny. And he had also taken advantage of the few days of clear skies and made the yard look nicer than they do on the HGTV shows his grandma watches. The sky was still clear today, but he didn't know how long that would last, living in Seattle.

He needed something to do today, desperately. He just couldn't think of what, now that the house was pristine.

He mulled it over for a second before sighing and falling forward. He caught himself with his arms and began to do push-ups. He didn't know how many he did, as he lost count around 200, and he only stopped after sweat running down his face and his arms felt like jelly.

Once he had collapsed on his face he turned over and did sit-ups and crunches until his abs burned.

After this he moved on to squats, and then jumping-jacks, and so on and so forth. He loved the physical challenge. It kept his mind and body occupied, didn't allow him to think about _it _at all.

After a little while he realized he couldn't do anything else in such a confined space as his bedroom, and decided to go for a run. He slipped into a shirt and changed into some basketball shorts before heading out into the hallway.

"I'm going for a run!" He yelled into the kitchen where he heard the noises of Yangchen eating breakfast.

He was out the door before she had the chance to respond and went into a brisk jog immediately.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-

_Ding-dong!_

Aang didn't move at the sound. He was too busy solving a math problem he had looked up online. He figured this made him a nerd but he didn't care. He hated math, but it sure kept his mind occupied.

_Knock, knock._

"Aang! The neighbor boy is here to see you!" Yangchen shouted through the door.

"Tell him to come back later! I'm busy."

There was a pause, and then, "Busy with what?"

Aang looked down at the sheet full of scribbled numbers and signs.

"I'll be right there!"

When Aang got to the door downstairs he saw Sokka standing there with a basketball in his hands.

"Hey," said Aang.

"Oh, hey!" Sokka said, "Uhm, me and Katara were gonna go play some basketball with our friend, but we need a fourth. So, uh, I was wondering if you wanted to play?"

"Oh, sounds cool. Let me get my shoes."

"Okay, cool. We'll be in the car just outside. We're gonna play at the park," Sokka said

"'Kay."

Once Aang had told his grandmother ("Oh, how fun!") and gotten his shoes, he went out to the car waiting for him. When he had gotten into the back seat he saw Katara was driving and Sokka was in the passenger seat.

"Hey, Aang," Katara smiled to him through the rear-view mirror.

"Hey," Aang replied with as much enthusiasm as he could muster. He found that after he had started keeping himself busy, it felt easier to appear happy. When he was obsessing over it, it was like a dark cloud hung over him at all times. But now, he lived for those moments when his mind was too occupied to think about it, those moments when it felt like a weight was lifted off his shoulders and it never happened.

"So where are we going?" Aang asked.

"Oh, that's right; you're new to this part of town." Sokka said.

"Yeah, I lived in the city. I don't know anything about the suburbs."

"Well, there's a park a few miles away that has a court," Katara told him, "We like to play there with our friend Toph; usually no ones on the court on Mondays."

-0-0-0-0-0-

They got to the park a few minutes later, and found a short little girl waiting for them on the court. She looked excessively like a tomboy and wore glasses with lenses as thick as her thumb.

"Hey, losers!" She shouted at them when she spotted them, "Who's this kid?" she said, pointing her thumb at Aang.

"This is Aang. He's gonna play with us today." Katara said sweetly.

"Aang, huh? Well, you better be ready to lose, kid. You better not be a 'sorry loser' like Meathead over here."

"Hey! I am not!" Sokka said defiantly.

"Whatever, Mr. _you cheated_!" she said, lowering her voice to mock Sokka.

"Oh, just shut up and let's play!" Katara said to both of them.

"Right, let's pick teams," said Toph, "I say boys versus girls."

"Sounds good to me," Katara said.

"Wait, how do I know if Aang's any good or not? I've never seen him play!" Sokka complained.

Aang decided to remain silent.

"No matter how bad he is, he can't be worse than you, Snoozles." Toph said slyly.

Sokka was about to respond when Katara spoke up, "Alright! I'm setting the timer on my phone to twenty minutes. And here-," she wrote _G _and _B _on the ground with chalk with a line between them, "-is the scoreboard. Let's flip a coin and I'll start the time. Let's play!"

When they started it became clear that it would be a tough game with the Girls scoring four points immediately.

Katara moved like water, smooth and flowing. Toph, on the other hand, was the opposite. She was immovable. She moved forward and whoever was in the way was in danger of being pummeled to the ground. Sokka ran around trying to keep up for the most part.

It took Aang a while to get into the game due to being sore from his earlier calisthenics; but once he did, he became the wind. He moved up and down the court with lightning speed, his feet seemed to barely touching the concrete below them.

"Hey, twinkletoes!" Toph had shouted at him once. He paused for a moment in confusion, giving her enough time to swipe the ball from him.

As the timer ran down, both of their scores rose. It was a close game all the way through. They were constantly one-upping each other.

Aang found that on the court Toph became his worst rival. Katara was good, sure, but there was something about Toph. Maybe it was the sneers every time she scored. Maybe it was the occasional quip or jibe trying to make him mess up. Whatever it was, it quickly caused the game to be a personal competition between the two of them.

Then the moment came. It was seconds before the timer went off. The Boys were a single point behind. Toph was on the other side of the court, and the ball was in Aang's hands. Their eyes narrowed, a smirk spread across Toph's face. Aang bared his teeth. He pounced forward like a panther, ducking under Katara, and crossing the court in two seconds. He flew directly toward Toph, trying to make her move. He should have known better. She stood where she stood, her arms spread out on either side.

In the moment before he slammed into her he made a split decision. He bounded up into the air, the wind itself seemingly lifting him up. His feet flew over Toph's head. His arm extended and pushed the ball the last few inches and it flew through the net.

_Beep! Beep! Beep! _Katara's phone went off.

"OHHHHHH YEAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" Sokka belted out, "IN YOUR FACE!" he bellowed at Katara, "IN _YOUR_ FACE!" he yelled out Toph.

"Nuh, nuh, nuh, we won and you loooost!" he sung out as he danced in a circle.

"Oh shut up, Sokka!" Katara said.

Aang started laughing as he saw Toph's face. Her eyes were slits and her lips were pursed. Her arms were crossed defiantly in front of her.

"What was that about being a sore loser, Toph?" Aang laughed out, as he was sent into a fit of giggles.

Murder burned in her eyes as she hit him on the arm with all her strength.

"OW!" Aang exclaimed, his hand immediately sent to him arm.

"Whoooo hooooo!" Sokka continued to sing out, oblivious to anything besides his cheering.

"Oh my God, Sokka! _Shut the hell up_!" Toph yelled as she charged at him.

"Hey, okay, I'll stop! I'll sto-_OOPH_!" she ran into him and they tumbled out of the court and onto the grass.

Katara turned red as she laughed at Toph and Sokka rolling around on the ground, wrestling furiously.

Aang was laughing too.

-0-0-0-0-0-

As the sun was going down they all sat in a starbucks, sipping frappuccinos and talking (Toph and Sokka were covered in grass stains and bruises). Toph had gotten over the defeat immediately after her scuffle with Sokka. Aang supposed she got her anger out.

After a while Toph announced sarcastically, "Alright! I gotta go to the little girls' room. Don't do anything cool without me. That shouldn't be too hard." She left with a smirk.

A few moments later Sokka said out of nowhere, "I want another!" and left to get a second frappuccino.

That left Aang and Katara alone together. After a moment of silence Katara said, "You know, Aang, we should hang out more. You're really fun."

"Thanks," Aang said, "but I've barely said two words all day."

"Well, I have a feeling that after a while you'll open up some more."

"Hmm. Maybe," Aang said.

"Hopefully… So how old are you?" she asked, engaging small talk.

"Sixteen. You?"

"Seventeen. Sokka's eighteen and Toph's your age."

"Cool."

"Yup," she gave him a smile.

There was something about that smile. It was comforting. "I don't know how long it'll take me to be my normal self again," he said without really knowing why.

Katara's expression shifted. Her lips parted slightly and her brow furrowed with concern. Her arm extended and she placed her hand on his. It wasn't in a flirty way, but in a comforting way. A way that almost felt motherly.

"You can take all the time you need, Aang. I know we haven't known each other for very long, but I'm here for you. I'll be your friend. Okay?"

He looked at her a moment, "Okay."

He smiled at her.

-0-0-0-0-0-

When they got home it was dark. Aang had gotten in, told Yangchen about his day, and went up to his room. After the physical exertions of the day, Aang found himself exhausted. He sighed as he collapsed into his bed._ I was happy today, _he thought.

_Live a good, happy life_.

He gasped as images of his father's dead, blank face filled his mind. His heart raced and his breath picked up. Tears immediately sprung to his eyes.

"No!" he whispered into his pillow. "No more tears."

For some reason_ she _popped into his head. His breath hitched, and then released slowly. He thought of her smile, and his heart slowed.

He wiped his tears and closed his eyes for sleep.

**-Token**


End file.
